Rikers War Episode One
by jsk
Summary: The Federation is in ruins due to the Borg


-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
DISCLAIMER: "Star Trek" is the copyrighted by Paramount, and Paramount  
owns Star Trek and the Star Trek Universe. The following story is   
not-for-profit.  
-----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Riker's War: Episode 1  
======================  
  
Locutus  
-------  
(c) Jasjit Singh, June 1999  
  
"I am, Locutus, of Borg. Resistance is futile. Your life, as it has  
been, is over. From this time forward, you will service, us. The  
knowledge and experience of the human, Picard, is part of us now. It has  
prepared us for all possible courses of action. Your resistance is  
hopeless . . . Number One."  
  
Captain's Log: ** It has been two years since our fatal encounter with the  
Borg. Our forces were completely massacred at Wolf 359. An entire fleet  
was wiped out in less than ten seconds. Planetary defences were also of  
no consequence against the behemoth. We failed to rescue Captain Picard  
from the Borg, and consequently had to engage Locutus in every battle we  
have had with the Borg since then...  
  
...The Federation is no more. Earth is nothing more than a Borg-drone  
ridden planet. Humanity has been assimiliated into the collective  
consciouness of the Borg. Starfleet fell the day the Borg invaded Sector  
001 and attacked Earth. Now only we few survive, in a handful of  
Starships, we roam the galaxy, fighting and hiding, striking the Borg when  
we can, where we can. It has been a difficult war, but we will prevail.  
The Federation is here, now, on this bridge, of the Enterprise. And we  
will stay alive, no matter what the stakes, we will preserve our way of  
life, we will take back what was ours, we will destory the Borg. **  
  
  
Captain William T. Riker walked onto the battered bridge of the  
battle-weary Enterprise, just as the starship came out of warp.  
"Mr. Crusher, scans on full," Riker gave the command. They were seeking  
out the Borg.  
"Aye sir!" responded Ensign Wesley Crusher, and began the long sweeps of  
scans.  
"Mr. Worf, contact the Crazy Horse, inform them we are in position," said  
Riker to Worf, who stood behind the Captain's chair at the tactical  
station.  
"Aye sir," responded Worf in a deep, rumbling voice, and sent the hail.  
Moments later he reported the response.  
"Captain Data reports they are nearing the co-ordinates, sir."  
"Very good. Now let's see what this Borg cube can really do," Riker said  
with a sneer as he sat in his Captain's chair.  
  
His first officer leaned forward in her seat and watched him carefully.  
"Captain," she said, "if this is to work, we must move in concert with the  
Crazy Horse. There is no margin for error."  
"I'm aware of that, Commander Shelby," replied the Captain, without taking  
his eyes off the viewscreen, "we will make no errors."  
  
The computer signalled that the wide-beam scans had located something of  
interest. Crusher switched to a narrow-beam scan.  
"Sir we have located the Borg cube," he reported.  
"Very good!" Riker turned to his console on the arm of his chair. "Helm,  
take us to them."  
  
The ship began to move, sluggishly at first, but then more smoothly as it  
picked up speed. Riker stood and contemplated in silence. His thoughts  
were disturbed by the deep voice of Mr. Worf:  
"Sir, Captain Data on subspace."  
"Put him through, on the main viewer."  
  
The image of the shining stars on the black matte of space vanished and  
was replaced by the face of the android. His neutral features did not  
change upon seeing Riker or his crew, but he did give them a cursory nod.  
"Captain, we are nearing the coordinates of the attack position," said  
Data. "Recommend we go to phase two."  
"Agreed. Are your weapons fully on-line?" asked Riker, with concern.  
"We took massive damage to our photon relay firing sequencers, so it is  
not completely certain that we will be able to fire successfully," replied  
Data without emotion or fear, "but rest assured Captain, we will complete  
our part of the plan."  
"That's all I ask for, Captain," said Riker, swinging around and  
seating himself again, "Oh, and Mr. Data, don't get yourself killed. I  
expect to see you at the next poker game."  
Data's eyes flickered once as he blinked, and then he nodded briefly.  
"You do not get yourself killed either, Captain," he replied. Riker  
smiled as they ended the transmission, feeling an twinge of regret. Was  
this the last time that he would see Data alive?  
  
Riker knew the risk. It meant that if the Crazy Horse attempted to fire a  
photon torpedo and it got stuck in mid-fire sequence, it would detonate  
within the weapons bay of the starship, and destroy the starship itself.  
But they had no other starships to spare, and time was of the essence.  
They were tracking the Borg, they were close. After months of  
surveying, searching, preparing, and planning, they had finally got them  
where they wanted them. It was to be now or never.  
  
Riker took a few deep breaths. He closed his eyes and steeled himself  
against what was to come. He had to be strong for the coming moments of  
dread and anguish. He had to lead his crew to success, to victory. He  
remembered Deanna's words to him, and pictured her in his mind. Beside  
him, Deanna stirred and turned to look at him, her eyes filled with  
sorrow. She looked at his battle-weary face, thin lines drawn around his  
eyes. She could feel his trepidation, the enormous amount of pressure he  
felt. It was always like this, before an encounter with the Borg. In  
every previous encounter, they had barely managed to escape. And they had  
always lost a ship. Whether or not they would be successful in this  
attack, one thing was certain, some of them would not be making it back   
alive.  
  
  
The computer started signalling, and Wesley called out from his station:  
"Sir, Borg ship is in range!"  
"Red Alert, shield on full!" Riker was out of his chair. He had already  
walked two steps before Deanna realized what had happened. "Mr. Crusher,  
put them on main viewer."  
The menacing picture of the dreaded Borg cube appeared on the viewscreen.  
It was quiet, inactive, almost serene. It was in orbit of a planet, Deneb  
II. There was no activity.  
  
And then Rikers face contorted in disgust as he realized what was  
happening.  
"They are assimilating the planet's population," he snarled. And then,  
"Helm, move us in closer."  
The large dark bulk of the Borg ship began to grow as they neared it,  
until it almost filled the viewscreen.  
  
"Incoming transmission," reported Mr. Worf, "It is the Borg."  
"Put them through, Mr. Worf," replied Riker in a casual tone. But Deanna  
felt a spike of pain shoot through her like a rod of lightning. This was  
a moment which Riker dreaded most of all. As the image on the  
viewscreen changed and was replaced by the cold face of Locutus, Deanna  
knew that this was the most difficult task for her Captain to face.  
  
...A great man has been lost today. Jean-Luc Picard was one of the finest  
Captain's in Starfleet, and my best friend...  
  
Deanna bowed her head as tears flowed down her face, stinging with pain.  
She could feel the torturous struggle inside Riker as he looked upon the  
face of his old Captain, and his new enemy.  
  
Locutus seemed unconcerned about their presence.  
"State your objective," he said in the voice of the Collective.  
"My *objective* is to stop you from assimilating the inhabitants of this  
planet," said Riker sharply.  
"Your defensive capabilities are limited. Your offensive capabilities are   
non-existant. You do not have the resources to mount and offensive  
against us. This is an attempt at deception."  
"Come now, Locutus, what would I gain by trying to decieve you?" Riker  
flashed a sly smile at Locutus. The spokesman for the Borg paused. The  
Borg were considering something. They had encountered Riker before, and  
had come to expect tricks from him. Perhaps they had discovered the Crazy  
Horse, thought Riker in a moment of panic. But soon, the moment passed,  
as Locutus spoke again:  
"This discussion is irrelevant. You will cease your trajectory towards  
us, or be destroyed."  
"I have no intention of changing course!" yelled Riker. The transmission  
signal was abruptly cut.  
  
Riker swung around to face his crew. He looked at Worf, who shook his  
head to indicate that he had gotten no messages from the Crazy Horse.  
Where were they?  
  
"Captain!" Deanna's voice sounded shrill, even to herself. But she had  
seen something on the viewscreen. Now Riker turned his full attention  
back to the screen. There, looming unnoticed behind the Borg cube, was  
the Crazy Horse! It lurched forward in a sudden move, and opened fire.  
Riker grinned. His plan had worked. He had occupied the Borg long enough  
to allow the Crazy Horse a course trajectory for an attack vector.  
"Mr. Worf, ready weapons!" he said triumphantly as he returned to his  
seat.  
"Modified torpedoes online," reported Worf.  
"Helm, take us into the fray," said Riker, "Mr. Worf, you may fire at  
will."  
  
The modified torpedoes were the brainchild of Commander Shelby. Geordi  
LarForge had worked with her to modify existing torpedoes so that they had  
an unnatural capability. The torpedo bays on the Enterprise and the Crazy  
Horse now held photon and quantum torpedoes that behaved just a little  
differently than ordinary torpedoes. These weapons had an outer-hull  
sheilding, which allowed them to penetrate the Borg electromagnetic shield  
with little impact. Once the sheilds had been penetrated, a computer  
which had been installed onto the weapon guided it towards the Borg cube  
and allowed it to burrow into the ship. Unlike ordinary torpedoes, the  
modified torpedoes did not detontate on impact; instead, they tunneled  
into the ship, until they were inside up to a distance of up to one  
kilometer, when they finalled dropped their own sheilds and triggered the  
explosion. The effect was that the torpedoes were destroying the Borg ship  
from the inside out. And from what they could see, the torpedoes were  
very effective.  
  
  
Riker smiled to himself. The Borg cube was taken unawares, in the middle  
of a mass-assimiliation project, they were being attacked from both sides  
with a new weapon which was crippling them. Their only defence was to  
destroy the torpedoes before they reached the cube. Or to destroy the  
attacking ships.  
"Helm, evasive maneuvers, pattern Riker-Alpha!" Riker roared amidst a  
bridge with crashing bulkheads and fires. General alarm for red alert was  
sounding, and they had lost main power to the bridge. The emergency  
generators had kicked in, but offered the bridge only partial lighting.  
Steam was venting from one of the ruptured junctions. Riker kept his eyes  
on the viewscreen and on Worf. There was too much of a din on the bridge,  
but the eyes of Klingon warrior communicated all that Riker needed to  
know. Their targeting and weapons system were still online. They could  
still fire. As long as they could fire, they were in the fight.  
  
Opposite them the Crazy Horse was engaged in similar elaborate maneuvers  
to escape the Borg phaser fire. Meanwhile both Federation ships unleashed  
a fury of torpedoes against the Borg cube. For the first time in two  
years, Riker thought he saw it begin to crumble. And then, Locutus was on  
his main viewscreen again.  
"Your strategy is incorrect," Locutus said. Riker stood up and stalked  
across the bridge towards the viewscreen.  
"Oh yeah?" he yelled, "then why are you the ones with the disabled ship?"  
"This new weapon that you have developed has been analyzed by us. We have  
a countermeasure. You will be destroyed. We will not accept  
surrender. There is no negotition."  
  
Again the tranmission ended abruptly. The Borg cube suddenly moved. It  
shot out of their path at high Warp.  
"Helm! Pursuit Course!" Riker roared. "Mr. Worf, contact the Crazy  
Horse. Give them new coordinates."  
While Mr. Worf initiated contact with the Crazy Horse, Riker consulted the  
control panel on the arm of his Captain's chair.  
"Sir, at their present course, the Borg cube is heading towards the  
Senzeti nebula," Crusher reported.  
"They can't enter that nebula. Mr. Crusher, isn't the Senzeti nebula  
bordered by a Rubidian mine field?"  
"Aye sir. It was used in the Rubidian-Denerri war, where the Rubidians  
mined the asteroid field. They never did disarm the mines."  
  
Riker made some quick calculations in his mind.  
"I have Captain Data on subspace, audio only," reported Worf.  
"Data! The Borg cube is heading towards the Senzeti nebula. Are you able  
to pursue?" asked Riker urgently.  
"We are able to pursue," Data's voice sounded distant, and was frequently  
disturbed by static intereference. "I would point out, that there is an  
opportunity to--"  
"Corner them and finish this," Riker interrupted him. "Mr. Data, you are a  
clever man. I am sending you the coordinates for an attack vector from  
the right flank."  
"Standby......we have the coordinates. We will take up the right flank  
position. You need to hold your position against the Borg cube until they  
turn for escape."  
"Acknowledged. Proceed."  
  
  
The Borg cube shot towards the Senzeti nebula, with a damaged Enterprise  
in pursuit. The Crazy Horze disappeared from sensors and view. It was  
making a long arc, which would end up on the right flank of the where the  
Borg cube would eventually be positioned. When in position, the Senzeti  
nebula would border the Crazy Horse on the right, with the open space  
between the ship and the Enterprise on the left.  
  
Riker turned to Deanna.  
"Locutus said that the Borg had developed a countermeasure. Any  
thoughts?"  
"They are the same. Our attack did not change their single-mindedness or  
oneness of purpose," Deanna sighed.  
  
Riker nodded and sat back in his chair. Commander Shelby leaned towards  
him.  
"Captain," she began,"if they have developed a countermeasure--"  
"This is our only chance, Commander. If we can hold them long enough Data  
to make another strike, it may be enough."  
"They will attack us first, since we are mounting the frontal attack."  
"I know."  
  
  
As they approached the nebula, the Borg cube slowed to a stop. The  
Enterprise came in close and opened fire. But this time, the torpedoes  
never reached the Borg cube. They all detonated several hundred   
kilometers away. The Borg had adapted.  
"Engineering, report! What happened?" Riker called over the comm.  
LaForge came on.  
"They used an inverse polaric field, Captain!" reported LaForge, "It used  
the torpedo shields to confuse the on-board computer into a premature  
detonation."  
"Those few minutes that they were in warp were all that they  
needed....," Riker thought out loud. "Geordi, is there any way we can  
circumvent this polaric field?"  
"Not that I can see at the moment, sir. I'm working on it!"  
"Keep me informed," said Riker, as he looked up at the huge hulking black  
mass of the Borg cube, which had begun to regenerate.  
  
Commander Shelby ordered shields to be raised just as the Borg phasers  
fired.  
"Evasive maneuvers, pattern Riker-Gamma!" Shelby ordered helm. The  
Enterprise swung wildly as the Borg phaser barely missed them.  
"In about three more minutes all the damage inflicted by our modified  
torpedoes will be repaired," Shelby warned Riker. "If we intend to get  
through, it must be now."  
"We can't, not with that polaric field." Again the Borg cube fired.  
Again the Enterprise ducked wildly to avoid the phaser fire.  
"We can't keep this up for much longer!" Riker said through clenched  
teeth, "Mr. LaForge, report."  
"I don't have an effective way to circumvent the polaric field. Recommend  
we attack with matter-antimatter spread," Geordi replied.  
"Make it so!"  
  
The Enterprise turned and came back at the Borg cube with a severe volley  
of matter-antimatter. It annihilated several of the outer portions of the  
Borg cube, but was still relatively uneffective. Finally the Borg cube  
activated a cutting beam, which began cutting into the Enterprise hull, at  
Engineering.  
"No, no, not again, not again," Riker said to himself, as Mr. Worf gave  
another report: "Shields are down!"  
  
  
The Crazy Horse appeared again out of nowhere, firing the modified  
torpedoes. The torpedoes were destroyed before they reached the Borg  
cube.  
"Mr. Worf, communicate our findings to the Crazy Horse," said Riker,  
straightening up, "Helm, set ramming trajectory. Prepare to jump to warp  
on my command."  
"Sir, incoming transmission, it's Captain Data," Worf reported.  
"Put it through."  
"Captain Riker, " Data sounded calm as usual, "the torpedoes are  
ineffective. I will attempt a reconfiguration to see if the polaric field  
effects can be negated. Please stand by."  
"Stand by, all hands," repeated Riker to his crew. And then the  
realization dawned that they had no shields. If the Borg phaser struck  
them, they would be destroyed.  
"Helm, move aside, I'm going to pilot the ship myself," said Riker as he  
took the helm.  
"Let's see you catch this," he said to the Borg cube in an undertone.  
  
  
On board the Crazy Horse, the bridge was in ruins. Bulkheads lay among  
other debris that scattered the floor of the bridge. There was a fire in  
the back which someone eventually put out. General alarm sounded loudly.  
Captain Data stood making the calculations. Finally he tapped the console  
at the Captain's chair, and turned to his first officer.  
"Have engineering make the following modifications to the torpedo outer  
shield configuration," he said. First Officer Yates nodded and  
communicated the requirements to Engineering. Moments later they got a  
report back : "Modifications made. We are ready sir."  
"Fire," said Data.  
"Firing..." the tactical officer reported, and then, "something's wrong.  
The firing mechanism is frozen! It's not firing."  
"It is imperative that we fire that torpedo." Data assessed the situation  
with the Enterprise. The ship was flying still, but severely damaged. He  
tapped his console again, and then his badge.  
"Computer, emergency transport," he said, and de-materialized from the  
bridge. The next second he found himself inside the torpedo launch tube,  
standing on a ledge just above the shiny black torpedo.  
  
"Where is the captain?" Yates called to the tactical officer. He made a  
quick scan and then replied in a shocked voice. "He is in the torpedo bay  
launch tube, Commander."  
"What the hell is he doing down there!?"  
  
Data jumped onto the top of the torpedo and opened it's primary control  
center. His fingers worked deftly as he reprogrammed the detontation  
sequence. Then, he stood up and walked to the end of the tube, where a  
panel for a jeffreys tube showed. He pulled it open and crawled inside.  
Just inside, there was a control panel for the firing sequence.  
"Commander Yates, prepare for torpedo launch," said Data, begininning the  
pre-launch sequence. "Target the Borg cube."  
"But sir, you're inside the launch tube!"  
"I have moved inside the jeffreys tube adjoining the launch tube. I will  
be exposed to higher radiation levels, but will be relatively safe."  
"Aye sir!"  
  
When the pre-launch sequence was completed, Data pulled on the lever and  
the torpedo began it's launch. It shuddered and heaved and then there was  
a blast of light as it shot out of the tube. The closed door of the  
jeffreys tube protected Data from most of the reactions, but he still felt  
a hot glow as the torpedo launched.  
  
"Data to bridge, torpedo away," he said, tapping his communicator badge.  
  
  
Captain Riker saw his Enterprise falling to pieces around him. He had  
used every trick in the book. It had bought them a precious few minutes,  
but he knew that he could not last like this much longer. The Borg cube  
was adapting fast to the evasive maneuvers. The last phaser had actually  
skimmed the top of the saucer section, and now several of the decks were  
engulfed in flames. With no word from Data, Riker set ramming speed. He  
set warp speed, and hesitated, looking at the button. It was blinking,  
waiting to be pressed. The voice of Data came as a start to him.  
"Data to Riker, our torpedo is away."  
"Thank you, Mr. Data!" Riker almost shouted his reply in exhiliration.  
They all watched as the orange-red glow of light trailed it's way across  
the stars and penetrated the Borg electromagnetic shield. It found it's  
way into the heart of the Borg ship, and exploded with terrific force.  
  
Riker began to move the Enterprise away from the Borg ship. But the Borg  
ship was not severaly enough damaged. It followed.  
  
And then Riker heard Worf's report.  
"Captain! There is a rupture in the space-time continuum forming, directly  
ahead!"  
Riker stared in astonishment as a second Borg cube emerged and stood in  
their path. Both cubes fired their torpedoes simultaneously.  
"Data to Riker. Prepare for emergency beamout."  
  
Riker and the crew stood. The Borg torpedoes were dangerously close on  
the viewscreen. They impacted. Riker could see the flames all around  
him, licking at him, consuming everything on the bridge and the  
Enterprise, as he de-materialized from the brigde of his ship.  
  
  
Seconds later he found himself on a transporter pad aboard the Crazy  
Horse. Scores of people had been simultaneously transported from the  
Enterprise and were now walking, stumbling, and being carried off the  
transporter pads. Riker looked back at his battered crew and then headed  
for the bridge.  
  
The bridge of the Crazy Horse was in no better condition than the bridge  
of the Enterprise when Riker had left it. Even as he walked out of the  
turbolift, he saw the Enterprise displayed on the large viewscreen, fires  
erupting from the saucer section. The Borg cutting beam had successully  
cut a large section of Engineering. The Enterprise had taken the impact  
of the two Borg torpedoes fully, and now was being torn apart by the  
explosion. It lost attitude control and fell apart, pieces of bulkhead  
flying away from each other at an alarming rate, amidst glowing embers and  
raging fires. The Enterprise, was no more.  
  
A tear formed in Rikers eye and rolled down his cheek as he watched the  
Enterprise crumble before the dark might of the Borg. Looming behind the  
wreck of the Enterprise, the two black masses of the Borg cubes stood  
silently, like large monoliths, witnessing the destruction of a  
persistent, but nevertheless inconsequential, foe.  
  
Data swung around. He gave a brief nod to Riker and then signalled to the  
helm.  
"Helm, warp nine, preset course Data-Alpha-One. Engage."  
Helm responded: "Preset Course Data-Alpha-One. Aye sir!"  
  
As the Crazy Horse shot into warp, the image of the Enterprise and the  
lumbering giants of the Borg cubes vanished from the viewscreen, and was  
replaced by bright stars shooting past the ship.  
  
  
It had been a close shave. The Borg cubes had not pursued them, which was  
odd for them, as Data had commented. But Riker was simply glad to be away  
from them. He had suffered a greater loss this day than he had expected,  
or was prepared for. Losing the Enterprise was a shock to him, a painful  
strike into his heart that chided him for not being the best Captain that  
he could have been. One hundred and seventy two crewmembers of the  
Enterprise had been lost. The Crazy Horse, while beginning with a smaller  
crew compliment, had lost sixty five.  
  
They held the funeral ceremonies for their fallen comrades, and those lost  
in the infinite void of endless Space. As Data spoke about the courage  
and valor of those who had sacrificed their lives in this long battle with  
the Borg, Riker stood alone, among his friends. He lowered his eyes from  
the view of the long row of shiny black coffins which occupied the cargo  
bay. These were going to be committed to the infinity of Space...  
  
...but his anger was turning into resolution.  
  
First they come into our Space, we fall back. Then they take Captain  
Picard, Jean-Luc, my mentor, my *friend*, we fall back. And now they  
destroy the Enterprise. Well, no more. The line must be drawn here, and  
no further. And *I* will make them pay for what they have done.  
  
I will make them pay . . .  
  
  
T h e E n d  
(c) Jasjit Singh, 1999  
  



End file.
